Valve, the well-known developer behind the leading platform for PC gaming, has recently issued a rare statement in response to allegations that it is rejecting games featuring AI-generated contents from its Steam games store.
As the gatekeeper of PC gaming distribution, Valve clarified that its evolving policy does not aim to oppose the use of AI.
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Similar to other app platforms, Steam follows a review and approval process, and its content guidelines are not always crystal clear until developers push the boundaries with innovative concepts.
One indie game developer, who shared their experience on a subreddit dedicated to AI-powered game development, claimed that Valve “is no longer willing to publish games with AI-generated content.”
The game they had submitted included “a few assets that were fairly obviously AI-generated,” and Valve seemed to take issue with this aspect.
Their initial warning letter stated, “As the legal ownership of such AI-generated art is unclear, we cannot ship your game while it contains these AI-generated assets unless you can confirm that you own the rights to all the IP used in the data set that trained the AI to create the assets in your game.”
A week later, they received another message: “We have reviewed your game and taken the time to better understand the AI technology used to create it.
Although we strive to release most titles submitted to us, we cannot distribute games if the developer does not possess all the necessary rights.
Currently, we are declining to distribute your game because it is uncertain whether the underlying AI technology used to create the assets has sufficient rights to the training data.”
Essentially, the policy, as stated, seems to constitute a blanket ban on AI-generated assets in games since most AI tools cannot definitively claim legal rights to all their training data.
Even if they could, using such data might still raise ethical concerns. Consequently, the situation poses questions about the potential liability faced by creators, distributors, and other parties involved in handling generated art.
In response to Eurogamer’s inquiry, Valve clarified that its policy is primarily based on legal requirements rather than a specific stance on AI.
“We acknowledge that AI technology is constantly evolving, and our intention is not to discourage its use on Steam. Instead, we are actively working to incorporate it into our existing review policies”
“In simple terms, our review process aligns with current copyright laws and policies, rather than being an additional layer of subjective judgment. As these laws and policies continue to evolve, so will our review process,” Valve explained.
Meanwhile, Valve announced that it would refund the normally non-refundable app submission fee in cases where the ongoing policy played a decisive role.
At present, it remains uncertain whether AI is being effectively utilized beyond experimentation or, in the case of the aforementioned developer, as a “blatant cash grab.”
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A video supposedly documenting the developer’s process emphasizes phrases like “Get rich quick with AI waifus” and “How I made $1000 Publishing an AI Generated Game on Steam (Gone Sexual?!?!)”.
Consequently, the impact of the policy change may not be felt too deeply. However, as established developers embrace AI tools and the technology itself becomes more sophisticated, the situation might become less straightforward.
